MEASURING QUALITY OF LIFE IN OLDER ADULTS LIVING WITH T2DM: A COMPARISON WITH YOUNGER ADULTS USING 2015 BRFSS DATA

Abstract Challenges due to burden of disease can affect adherence to self-care behaviors and optimal health outcomes in those living with T2DM. This study utilized state- and national-level data from the 2015 BRFSS to compare QoL measured by the prevalence of physical and mental burden days among older adults (OAs) compared to younger adults living with T2DM. The results of our analysis showed that OAs living in the US were significantly less likely to experience at least one mental burden day when compared to their younger counterparts (OR =0.61, 95% CI: 0.58, 0.64), while gender, education, race, BMI, and depression, CVD, or another chronic condition were significantly associated with the odds of experiencing at least one mental burden day. Whereas, in Kentucky OAs were less likely to experience at least one mental burden day when compared to their younger counterparts (OR= 0.48, 95% CI: 0.35, 0.66). Gender, education, BMI, and depression were significantly associated with the odds of experiencing at least one mental burden day or one physical burden day. The findings of this study suggests that the questions used by BRFSS to measure QoL may not be the most suitable for OAs who likely have different criteria for self-reported mental or physical burden days. When assessing QoL or burden of disease among the aging at a population level, considerable thought should be given into the questions asked and if they appropriately examine patient-level QoL in this population.

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Lost Work Opportunity Score Predicts Health in Retirement

Innovation in Aging ◽

10.1093/geroni/igab046.2178 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 570-570

Author(s):

Maren Wright Voss ◽

Man Hung ◽

Lorie Richards ◽

Wei Li ◽

Pollie Price ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Population Level ◽

Health Impact ◽

Health Impacts ◽

Ample Evidence ◽

Involuntary Retirement ◽

Lost Work ◽

Level Data ◽

Gender Education ◽

Evidence Of Impact ◽

Work Opportunity

Abstract Objectives Under-reporting of unemployment or forced retirement has consequences for measuring the impacts of job changes on health at retirement. We analyzed a comprehensive three-part measure of lost work opportunity for evidence of impact on health. Methods We combined variables from the Health and Retirement Study for 2,576 respondents assessing unemployment, forced retirement, and earlier than planned retirement into a single lost work opportunity score (LOS). We evaluated the reliability and unidimensionality of the LOS. We conducted multivariate regression to assess health impacts controlling for age, gender, education, race, ethnicity, and prior health status. Results The Cronbach’s Alpha for the LOS was a = 0.76 and the LOS variables primarily loaded onto a single component demonstrating undimensionality. The LOS significantly predicted self-reported health (⃞ = .16; p < .001) with higher lost work associated with negative health outcomes (Cox and Snell R2 = 0.07). The LOS score significantly predicted mental health declines (⃞ = .07; p = .002)(Cox and Snell R2 = 0.07). Discussion Population-level data indicates that health declines following both unemployment and retirement, but there is ample evidence that early or planned retirements do not show the same negative health impacts. We examined the health impact of retirement using the construct of lost work opportunity rather than voluntary or involuntary retirement, per se. Our findings indicate that as much as 7% of negative health changes in the early retirement years could be attributable to employment changes that were unplanned or experienced as outside the retiree's control.

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Association between live childhood vaccines and COVID-19 outcomes: a national-level analysis

Epidemiology and Infection ◽

10.1017/s0950268821000571 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 149 ◽

Author(s):

Chikara Ogimi ◽

Pingping Qu ◽

Michael Boeckh ◽

Rachel A. Bender Ignacio ◽

Sahar Z. Zangeneh

Keyword(s):

Vaccine Coverage ◽

Healthcare Access ◽

National Level ◽

Population Level ◽

Summary Score ◽

Strongly Correlated ◽

Level Data ◽

Community Transmission ◽

Childhood Vaccines ◽

Access And Quality

Abstract We investigated whether countries with higher coverage of childhood live vaccines [BCG or measles-containing-vaccine (MCV)] have reduced risk of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)-related mortality, while accounting for known systems differences between countries. In this ecological study of 140 countries using publicly available national-level data, higher vaccine coverage, representing estimated proportion of people vaccinated during the last 14 years, was associated with lower COVID-19 deaths. The associations attenuated for both vaccine variables, and MCV coverage became no longer significant once adjusted for published estimates of the Healthcare access and quality index (HAQI), a validated summary score of healthcare quality indicators. The magnitude of association between BCG coverage and COVID-19 death rate varied according to HAQI, and MCV coverage had little effect on the association between BCG and COVID-19 deaths. While there are associations between live vaccine coverage and COVID-19 outcomes, the vaccine coverage variables themselves were strongly correlated with COVID-19 testing rate, HAQI and life expectancy. This suggests that the population-level associations may be further confounded by differences in structural health systems and policies. Cluster randomised studies of booster vaccines would be ideal to evaluate the efficacy of trained immunity in preventing COVID-19 infections and mortality in vaccinated populations and on community transmission.

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Not all Boomers: Temporal Orientation Explains Inter- and Intra-Cultural Variability in the Link between Age and Climate Engagement

10.21203/rs.3.rs-229534/v1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Nathaniel Geiger ◽

Bryan McLaughlin ◽

John A Velez

Keyword(s):

Climate Change ◽

Older Adults ◽

Future Orientation ◽

Negative Relationship ◽

Temporal Orientation ◽

Younger Adults ◽

Age Related ◽

The Us ◽

Climate Action ◽

Future Consequences

Abstract Some previous work suggests that older adults, relative to younger adults and teenagers, are less engaged with climate change; yet, this pattern is not consistently found across all countries or populations. Here, we consider whether temporal orientation might act as a boundary condition for age effects on climate change engagement. We assess whether cultural (Study 1) and inter-individual (Study 2) differences in temporal orientation moderate the tendency for older adults to be less engaged with climate change than younger adults. Study 1 (N = 44,387) reveals that amongst European countries, countries with a greater long-term orientation tend to show a weaker (i.e. less negative) relationship between age and the salience of climate change (i.e., cognitive engagement with the topic). Study 2 (N = 798) demonstrates that in the US, the negative relationship between age and climate action intentions becomes smaller in magnitude (i.e. less negative) among those higher in consideration of future consequences, but increases in those higher in consideration of immediate consequences. These findings support the notion that it is a confluence of age and present orientation (and low future orientation) that that drives age-related declines in climate engagement.

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The 1968 Influenza Pandemic and COVID-19 Outcomes

10.1101/2021.10.23.21265403 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Charles A Taylor ◽

Christopher Boulos ◽

Matthew J Memoli

Keyword(s):

Influenza Pandemic ◽

Population Level ◽

Related Factors ◽

Death Rates ◽

Individual Level ◽

Age Cohorts ◽

Differential Outcomes ◽

Level Data ◽

The Us ◽

Before And After

Past pandemic experience at an individual or population level may affect health outcomes in future pandemics. In this study, we focus on how the influenza pandemic of 1968 (H3N2), which killed up to 100,000 people in the US, may have produced differential COVID-19 (SARS-CoV-2) outcomes. Our analysis finds that areas with high influenza-related mortality in 1968 experienced 1-2% lower COVID-19 death rates. We employ an identification strategy that isolates variation in COVID-19 rates across age cohorts born before and after 1968. Locales in the US with high 1968 influenza mortality have lower COVID-19 death rates among older cohorts relative to younger ones. The relationship holds using county-level and patient-level data, as well as data from hospitals and nursing homes. Results do not appear to be driven by systemic or policy-related factors that would affect a population, but instead suggest a potential individual-level response to prior influenza pandemic exposure. The findings merit substantial further investigation into potential biological, immunological, or other mechanisms that can account for these differential outcomes.

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The Importance of Social Connectedness in Building Age-Friendly Communities

Journal of Aging Research ◽

10.1155/2012/173247 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 2012 ◽

pp. 1-9 ◽

Cited By ~ 62

Author(s):

Charles A. Emlet ◽

Joane T. Moceri

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Social Connectedness ◽

Aging In Place ◽

Community Members ◽

Younger Adults ◽

Social Reciprocity ◽

Level Data ◽

World Cafe ◽

The World ◽

Community Forum

The purpose of this paper is to further elucidate the importance of social relationships and social connectedness with aging in place and in developing elder-friendly communities. The process used in this study was inclusive of younger adults (age 40–65) as well as older adults (65+) in order to further understand how they envision a community that could support their own aging in place. A community forum, using the World Café format, was conducted in order to engage community members, 40 years and older, in conversation about the importance of social connectedness in elder-friendly communities. A second purpose of this forum was to obtain data on what would keep aging boomers in their community as they age. Three major themes emerged from qualitative analysis of the forum:social reciprocity,meaningful interactions, andstructural needs/barriers. The results of this study reinforce the importance of social connectedness in creating and maintaining elder-friendly communities for older adults, as well as soon-to-be retired individuals, wishing to maintain life connectedness to their community. The study suggests the possibility of using more nontraditional research techniques (such as the World Café process) for gathering community level data.

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Association between live childhood vaccines and COVID-19 outcomes: a national-level analysis

10.1101/2020.10.17.20214510 ◽

2020 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Chikara Ogimi ◽

Pingping Qu ◽

Michael Boeckh ◽

Rachel A. Bender Ignacio ◽

Sahar Z. Zangeneh

Keyword(s):

Life Expectancy ◽

Vaccine Coverage ◽

Healthcare Access ◽

National Level ◽

Population Level ◽

Summary Score ◽

Level Data ◽

Childhood Vaccines ◽

Access And Quality ◽

Cluster Randomized

AbstractWe investigated whether countries with higher coverage of childhood live vaccines [BCG or measles-containing-vaccine (MCV)] have reduced risk of COVID-19 related mortality, accounting for known systems differences between countries. In this ecological study of 140 countries using publicly available national-level data, higher vaccine coverage, representing estimated proportion of people vaccinated during the last 15 years, was associated with lower COVID-19 deaths. The associations attenuated for both vaccine variables, and MCV coverage became no longer significant once adjusted for a validated summary score accounting for life expectancy and healthcare quality indicators, the Healthcare access and quality index (HAQI). The magnitude of association between BCG coverage and COVID-19 death rate varied according to HAQI, and MCV coverage had little effect on the association between BCG and COVID-19 deaths. While there are associations between live vaccine coverage and COVID-19 outcomes, the vaccine coverage variables themselves were strongly correlated with COVID-19 testing rate, HAQI, and life expectancy. This suggests that the population-level associations may be further confounded by differences in structural health systems and policies. Cluster randomized studies of booster vaccines would be ideal to evaluate the efficacy of trained immunity in preventing COVID-19 infections and mortality in vaccinated individuals and on community transmission.

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Risk Factors of Fall-Related Emergency Department Visits by Fall Location of Older Adults in the US

Western Journal of Emergency Medicine ◽

10.5811/westjem.2021.2.49307 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 22 (4) ◽

pp. 988-999

Author(s):

Uma Kelekar ◽

Debasree Das Gupta ◽

Jewel Shepherd ◽

Anupam Sule

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Older Adults ◽

Emergency Department ◽

Rural Areas ◽

National Level ◽

Multivariable Analysis ◽

Geographic Area ◽

Emergency Department Visits ◽

Primary Data ◽

The Us

Introduction: Prior evidence indicates that predictors of older adult falls vary by indoor-outdoor location of the falls. While a subset of United States’ studies reports this finding using primary data from a single geographic area, other secondary analyses of falls across the country do not distinguish between the two fall locations. Consequently, evidence at the national level on risk factors specific to indoor vs outdoor falls is lacking. Methods: Using the 2017 Nationwide Emergency Department Sample (NEDS) data, we conducted a multivariable analysis of fall-related emergency department (ED) visits disaggregated by indoor vs outdoor fall locations of adults 65 years and older (N = 6,720,937) in the US. Results: Results are compatible with findings from previous primary studies. While women (relative risk [RR] = 1.43, 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.42-1.44) were more likely to report indoor falls, men were more likely to present with an outdoor fall. Visits for indoor falls were highest among those 85 years and older (RR = 2.35, 95% CI, 2.33-2.37) with outdoor fall visits highest among those 84 years and younger. Additionally, the probabilities associated with an indoor fall in the presence of chronic conditions were consistently much higher when compared to an outdoor fall. We also found that residence in metropolitan areas increased the likelihood of an indoor elderly fall compared to higher outdoor fall visits from seniors in non-core rural areas, but both indoor and outdoor fall visits were higher among older adults in higher income ZIP codes. Conclusion: Our findings highlight the contrasting risk profile for elderly ED patients who report indoor vs outdoor falls when compared to the elderly reporting no falls. In conjunction, we highlight implications from three perspectives: a population health standpoint for EDs working with their primary care and community care colleagues; an ED administrative vantage point; and from an individual emergency clinician’s point of view.

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The third alternative: Latino immigration from the United States to Canada, 1980 to 2009

Canadian Studies in Population ◽

10.25336/p6990w ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 40 (3-4) ◽

pp. 218

Author(s):

Edward S. Shihadeh ◽

Frank Trovato ◽

Raymond E. Barranco

Keyword(s):

United States ◽

Mother Tongue ◽

National Level ◽

The United States ◽

Immigration Legislation ◽

Level Data ◽

Latino Immigration ◽

Economic Recessions ◽

The Us

Using a 30-year time series of national-level data, this study examines the determinants of immigration from the United States to Canada among those whose mother tongue is Spanish. Our results reveal that over the last three decades, Spanish mother-tongue immigrants to Canada increasingly originate from the United States. The trend exhibits two basic patterns. Over the long term, there is a rise in Spanish mother-tongue immigrants coming to Canada from the US, which, in a multivariate context, appears to be linked to the rise in the proportion of Latinos in the US population, as well as to the rise in anti-immigration sentiment in the United States. In the short term, such immigration appears to rise in response to economic recessions and to anti-immigration legislation in the United States. Implications of these findings are discussed.

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Loneliness and Isolation Versus Wisdom and Compassion During the Pandemic

Innovation in Aging ◽

10.1093/geroni/igab046.2083 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. 546-546

Author(s):

Dilip Jeste

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

National Level ◽

Inverse Correlation ◽

Physical And Mental Health ◽

Younger Adults ◽

Alpha And Beta Diversity ◽

Adult Lifespan ◽

Biological Patterns ◽

Better Than

Abstract Our studies of US national-level samples across adult lifespan as well as older adults in California and in Italy’s Cilento region have found a consistently strong inverse correlation between loneliness and wisdom, especially its compassion component. Loneliness and social isolation are associated with worse physical and mental health while the reverse is true for wisdom and compassion. Follow-up of older adults in San Diego during the Covid-19 pandemic showed no change in this pattern. While the effects of the pandemic and the necessary social distancing were heterogeneous, older adults generally handled these stresses better than younger adults, with less loneliness and greater compassion. Our recent studies assessing EEG responses to emotional stimuli as well as alpha and beta diversity in gut microbiome showed opposing biological patterns characterizing loneliness and wisdom. I will also present preliminary data from a compassion training intervention to reduce loneliness among older adults.

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A FREEZE IN TIME: PERCEPTION AND EXPERIENCE OF AMERICAN AND HONG KONG CHINESE OLDER ADULTS

Innovation in Aging ◽

10.1093/geroni/igz038.2753 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽

pp. S750-S750

Author(s):

Tinky Oi Ting Ho ◽

Helene Hoi-Lam Fung ◽

Vivian Hiu Ling Tsang ◽

Angel Yee-lam Li ◽

David J Ekerdt ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Hong Kong ◽

Mixed Method ◽

Perceived Control ◽

Structured Interview ◽

Younger Adults ◽

Chinese Older Adults ◽

The Us ◽

Mixed Method Design ◽

Images Of The Future

Abstract According to self-continuity model, older adults are less likely to distinguish between the present and future, relative to younger adults. This mixed method design study aims at examining whether older adults perceive future as an infinite extension of present (i.e. “time freeze”) and investigating whether it is associated with life satisfaction, perceived control and perceived changes in future. 30 older adults from the US (aged 60-85, M = 78.4) and Hong Kong (aged 60-85, M =71.4) completed a structured interview and a survey. Findings revealed that 43% of Americans and 83% of Hong Kongers were experiencing ‘time freeze’. Individuals with a lower level of time freeze held more vivid and positive images of the future, and were achieving life goals actively, whereas individuals with a higher level of time freeze had comparatively more vague and neutral future views, and focused more on maintaining the current lifestyle.

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